1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates, generally, to trailers of the type hauled by motorized vehicles. More particularly, it relates to a trailer that extends from a trailer hitch in cantilevered relation thereto.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hauling lumber or other long objects in the range of sixteen to eighteen feet or thereabout is usually accomplished by using a sixteen or eighteen foot trailer. A trailer hitch is mounted to the rear of a vehicle, and the trailer is hitched thereto. There are many disadvantages to these commonly-used trailers. First of all, they cost between $600.00 to $800.00. Since they include tires, weigh between six hundred to a thousand pounds and are towed over highways, a tag and a spare tire must be purchased. Some states even require trailer owners to buy insurance coverage for them. Moreover, the regular tires wear out and require replacement every two or three years. The entire trailer requires preventive maintenance every four or five years. The trailers have wooden flooring, which also must be placed every couple of years. The hitches also wear out and require replacement. The user can forget to lock the hitch down, and the safety chains can come loose and drag on the roadway.
The trailers are also difficult to drive with. It is hard to find a parking space, and most people find it hard to back a trailer into a space. The driver also has to make wide turns. Since the trailers can "fishtail" at high speeds, most states limit their highway speed to about forty five miles per hour. Even more disadvantages could be recited. The point is that an alternative apparatus is needed for hauling long objects over the public roads.
However, it was not obvious to those of ordinary skill in this art how the needed apparatus could be provided, in view of the art considered as a whole at the time the present invention was made.